Keyed release of secondary locking mechanism

Abstract

A child safety seat for use in a vehicle includes a base assembly securable to a seat in a vehicle, a seat shell connectable to the base assembly in a forward-facing configuration, a rearward-facing configuration, or moveable therebetween, a connector assembly having a latching mechanism operably configured to permit selective release of the connector assembly thereby enabling separation of the seat shell from the base assembly, and a secondary latching mechanism, the secondary latching mechanism configured to prevent operation of the latching mechanism in one or more predetermined operational configurations.

The invention claimed is: 
     
         1 . A child safety seat for a vehicle comprising:
 a base assembly securable to a seat in a vehicle;   a seat shell separable from the base assembly;   a connector assembly connecting the seat shell to the base assembly and configured to enable selective detachment of the seat shell from the base assembly;   a latching mechanism configured to selectively release the connector assembly and thereby enable detachment of the seat shell from the base assembly; and   a latch interlock having blocked and unblocked positions and configured to prevent release of the latching mechanism when in the blocked position, the latch interlock including a releasing actuator operable to move the latch interlock from the blocked to the unblocked position; and   a secondary interlock apparatus configured to selectively inhibit operation of the releasing actuator thereby preventing movement of the latch interlock to the unblocked position and subsequent detachment of the seat shell from the base assembly, the secondary interlock apparatus comprises a shape that requires a tool to operate the releasing actuator.   
     
     
         2 . The safety seat of  claim 1 , wherein the shape comprises an opening limiting access to the release actuator, the opening having a shape configured to accept the tool. 
     
     
         3 . The safety seat of  claim 2 , wherein the opening has a cross-sectional shape and the tool has a protrusion having a cross-sectional shape matching the opening. 
     
     
         4 . The safety seat of  claim 1 , wherein the latching mechanism includes a resilient member biasing the latching mechanism in the blocking position. 
     
     
         5 . The safety seat of  claim 4 , wherein the latching mechanism further comprises a holding device configured to momentarily retain the latch interlock in the unblocked position as the seat shell is detached. 
     
     
         6 . The safety seat of  claim 5 , wherein the holding device further comprises a release which releases the holding device when the seat shell is reconnected to the base assembly and enables the latching mechanism to return to the blocking position. 
     
     
         7 . A two-part child safety seat for a vehicle comprising:
 a base assembly securable to a seat in a vehicle;   a seat shell connected to the base assembly and selectively releaseable therefrom by operation of a latching assembly;   a latch interlock having blocked and unblocked positions and configured to prevent release of the seat shell from the base assembly when in the blocked position, the latch interlock further comprising a releasing actuator operable to move the latch interlock from the blocked to the unblocked position;   a holding device configured to momentarily retain the latch interlock in the unblocked position as the seat shell is released from the base assembly; and   a secondary interlock apparatus configured to selectively inhibit operation of the releasing actuator thereby preventing movement of the latch interlock to the unblocked position and subsequent release of the seat shell from the base assembly.   
     
     
         8 . The child safety seat of  claim 7 , wherein the latching assembly is biased toward the blocked position. 
     
     
         9 . The child safety seat of  claim 7 , wherein the holding device further comprises a release which releases the holding device when the seat shell is reconnected to the base assembly and returns the latching assembly to the blocking position. 
     
     
         10 . The child safety seat of  claim 7 , wherein the secondary interlock apparatus comprises a shape that requires a tool to operate the releasing actuator. 
     
     
         11 . The child safety seat of  claim 10 , wherein the shape comprises an opening limiting access to the releasing actuator, the opening having a shape configured to accept the tool. 
     
     
         12 . The child safety seat of  claim 11 , wherein the opening has a cross-sectional shape and the tool has a protrusion having a cross-sectional shape matching the opening. 
     
     
         13 . A latch interlock for a child safety seat, the seat having a base assembly, a seat shell connectable to the base assembly and selectively releasable by a latching assembly, the latch interlock comprising:
 a primary latch interlock having blocked and unblocked positions, the primary interlock being resiliently biased toward the blocked position and preventing release of the seat shell from the base assembly positioned therein;   a releasing actuator operable to move the latch interlock from the blocked to the unblocked position;   a holding device configured to momentarily retain the primary latch interlock in the unblocked position as the seat shell is released from the base assembly; and   a secondary latch interlock apparatus configured to selectively inhibit operation of the releasing actuator thereby preventing movement of the primary latch interlock to the unblocked position and subsequent release of the seat shell from the base assembly.   
     
     
         14 . The latch interlock of  claim 13 , wherein the releasing actuator is configured to move the primary latch interlock to the unblocked position when the releasing actuator is depressed. 
     
     
         15 . The latch interlock of  claim 14 , wherein the secondary interlock apparatus comprises a cover portion and an access aperture that requires a tool to operate the releasing actuator. 
     
     
         16 . The latch interlock of  claim 15 , wherein the cover portion and access aperture are arranged and disposed to permit passage of a tool, which, upon insertion moves the releasing actuator and thereby the primary latch interlock to the unblocked position. 
     
     
         17 . The latch interlock of  claim 16 , wherein the cover portion and access aperture are integrated into the releasing actuator.